Finally some summer time out for me! I’ll divide this weekend into two posts, because their topics are totally different. This one is about camping in Griblje, small village at Kolpa river. I always liked the river banks at Kolpa, there is always green grass and many trees, it’s much different than the sea side. We put our tent in a shade, just few meters from the water. We got a bit mad when we noticed tent pegs were missing. They were not packed in the same bag and yes, it was a bit stupid of me not to check that at home, but I was sure they must be there, they always are! Obviously not… So we went to Črnomelj to see if we can buy some tent pegs in any store there, but no luck with that, so we had to improvize with different branches. So in the end we solved this problem, though tent probably wouldn’t stand in some weird weather, luckily this weekend was sunny.
Ok, so I just have to say some stuff about this camp and our whole experience. We were laughing all the time, because there were so many funny and unusual things. In general we were happy to be at such beautiful place, we had nice weather, we were swimming, playing badminton, reading, relaxing and had nice time. I even left my dSLR camera in the car, so I took photos only with my compact waterproof Olympus. I guess that camera was the best choice around the water anyway. =)
Well first thing was when I came out of water and I wanted to take a shower, but I realized there isn’t any. Ok, no problem, I can take a day without a shower. Then when I was walking back to the tent I passed a guy taking a shower outside, it was hidden between rocks. So it’s an open outdoor shower, but there is no sign so you have to know where to look or you have to see someone taking a shower to know that.
Then I asked at the reception (that is actually not a reception but a bar) if the toilets at the bar are open all night and we were told that the whole building is closed, usually it closes around 2 a.m. and opens in the morning. Ok… so I guess I have to pee somewhere in nature if I have to go in the middle of the night… Well at around 7:30 in the morning I wanted to go to the toilet and to brush my teeth, but the bar was still closed and I noticed the sign that it opens at 9:30. What the hell?! Where am I supposed to pee now?! And there were already people walking around the camp, so I couldn’t just go behind some tree… Then I came across some lady and I asked her if she knows where could I go and she said there are some portable toilet cabins at the parking lot. Where?! I didn’t see them when I was walking around there a day before, then she said they are hidden behind some wood. And yes, they really were… Why was there no sign?! I was just supposed to know there are hidden toilets or something?! So weird. =)
Then in the morning the camp owner came and he started to hammer some stakes in the ground, just on a path where all camp visitors walked to the beach. It got even weirder when he started to pull some warning strips almost from the river, around those stakes and all the way to the parking lot. He basically closed the whole camp with it, although he did lowered it at some places so we were able to step through. We had no idea why was that, it just felt like he doesn’t want us to go anywhere. So weird and very unwelcoming.
After that the owner started to walk around with a “BEACH” sign and he put it on the beach. Wow, what a surprise for the visitors, they see a beach sign when they are obviously already on the beach… =D Not to mention that the same sign at the road is visible about 2 meters before you have to turn into a narrow alley, so there is a lot of chance you will pass it…
Ok, enough whining, it was a great weekend in general, but these situations were just so random and unusual that I had to write about it. I could write some more but I decided it’s probably enough. =D So this is a great weekend location if you feel like enjoying the nature, just don’t expect too much hospitality or luxury and you’ll be ok. =)
Anja Perše 